Thursday, December 31, 2009

I was cleaning up my work table this morning which was covered with stuff from the tags we've been doing here on the blog for the past two weeks. As I was gathering stuff up I was thinking, "What in the heck am I going to do with all these tags?" (you know, I am trying to get over my hording saving issues). So I decided to give them away, along with the 3 three clear stamps I used to make them (from my own stash), a brand new bottle of Halo glitter (my favorite), miscellaneous chipboard pieces you might need to finish the calendar, the Tim Holtz mask we used, and a sweet little bird. Some of the tags come with the fixings but some are plain, like the window (you will have to find your own silver ladle to put the little bird in).

If you would like to win the tag package just make a comment on this post between now and Sat at midnight. We will choose a winner at random on Sunday, Jan 3rd.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Well, as I said the last time we met here...I have saved the hardest tag for last. It really is not that hard, I just forgot how I did it and therefore couldn't teach anyone to make the flower until I remembered. I will suggest that you try this with some scrap paper before you use vintage paper to make the flower. Although, I made a fine flower the first time around...it was the 2nd, 3rd and 4th that were the problem. So I guess it just depends on how daring you are, or how much vintage music paper you have.

Tag #3

Adhere ledger paper to tag. I cut the side but ripped to top of the paper (you can see this better in the previous picture).

Ink edges of tag

I will stop here for a short tutorial on inking, within the tutorial on tag making.

I have received a few emails, "what is that tool you are using with the wooden handle?" If you already know and use this handy tool then you can skip this part and move right on to the tag tutorial. For those that have never seen this tool or have bought one but have yet to open the package...this is for you, so keep reading.

The Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool and Foam is the mess-free way to apply inks paper crafting projects. The Blending tool has foam pads that can be changed out easily. NOTE: Ranger also sells an Alcohol ink blending tool (more of a green package). This tool has a felt pad not foam. This will not work for the technique we are using here but replacement foam pads will work on the wood tool since it is the same in both packages. In other words, you have to have a foam pad on the bottom of the wood tool.

1. Place your tag on a Craft Sheet. This is a necessary tool for any crafter. You can paint or stamp on it and it wipes right off, the same with ink and such. In fact, you could even bake a batch of cookies on it...it works like a Silpat baking liner in your oven. I keep mine flat, under my cutting mat on my work table when not in use.
2. Ink your blending tool by rubbing the ink pad(a circular motion, not an up and down one).
3. Start your blending tool on the craft sheet and pull toward the tag.The goal is to not have a hard edge, so you need to work quickly and in a circular motion (we are all about wrist motions today).Think of it as if you are pulling the ink onto the tag surface from the craft sheet.Remember, use a circular motion.
4. The blending tool should be a angled a little bit back so the front of the foam pad never touches the tag.

5. Practice makes perfect.

Now back to the tag instructions:

Use a UHU glue stick to glue together 2 sheets of vintage music paper.

When I made the original flower I used old music but it had come from a book that had very heavy pages. So when I tried to re-create the flower is ripped every time. After about 6 try's Ihad to walk away and think about what I was doing different. It took a few days but the answer came to me in the shower..."glue two pages together to make it stronger"...It worked on the first try.

Large circle

Draw about a 4" circle on vintage paper (I used a glass from my kitchen to make the circle).

Cut out the circle with pinking sheers (if you don't have pinking sheers then just use regular scissors)

Medium circle
You will need a smaller circle so I used the same glass to draw another circle, then I just sketched another circle in the middle about a 1/2" smaller. Cut out with scissors or pinking sheers.

Small circle

Now one more circle about 2" in diameter.

Cut a slit in the small circle.

Wrap the paper circle around a small bunch of flowers, so that the paper overlaps a bit to make a cone shape. Secure with a bit of glue or a piece of scotch tape. Set aside.

Medium circle

Make a pleat in the paper circle and staple. I am using the Tiny Attatcher to staple.

Turn the circle and make another pleat, staple again. Set aside.

Large circle

Gather and pinch the center of the large circle.

Staple on the underside.

Now gather the large and medium circles. Lay the medium circle on top of the large and punch as close to the center as you can (avoiding the staples) with the large hole on the Cropadile.

Now, thread the small cone piece into the hole you just punched for the center of the flower.

It should look something like this

Now crush it. Yes, I said crush. Crumple it up...now peel it apart to reveal a more compact flower. Don't be afraid, the paper can take it. And if it rips a bit, no worries...remember, were making stuff from junk.

Peel the paper open to get the flower to the size you want. You might have to crush again to get it just right. Take your ink blending tool and add some ink to the edges. I used Antique Linen but you can use any color ink you like. I think it looks a little more rustic to add the ink now, but if you choose to ink right after you cut the circle you can.

Now lets add a bit of glitter. You can do that two ways. You could use Stickles Distress Glitter (Ranger) and just squeeze it on like this.

But, I get really impatient with Stickles because they take a long time to dry in my book (or at least a long time for me)...so I just usually use a bit of Glossy Accents and pour glitter over the top. But that's just me. You can do whatever you like best.

So to finish the LONGEST TUTORIAL in the history of blogging...

Glue a piece of ephemera to chipboard to give it a raised effect.

Note: Because I don't like to use original ephemera, I tend to color copy pieces on my home printer when I am doing a project such as this. I can scan and copy the same piece of ephemera on white or creme cardstock and get two different colors of the same piece. I have a couple friends who travel to Europe a few times a year and have been lucky enough to be the recipient of their vintage finds. Just this last Oct my friend Carol brought me four of the cards (including the one seen here) used in the Junk Drawer Advent Calendar direct from London.

Poke a hole in each corner for a small brad.

Adhere card to tag front with a tape runner.

Punch a hole in center of card and thread the flower you made previously into card and through tag.

Add velvet scalloped ribbon to the bottom of tag.

I believe the one I used is made by Making Memories.

Done
Now add it to your board.
I've had a fun time showing you how I made some of the tags for the calendar. Feel free to email me if you have any questions about the tags we did not do in this forum. And if you make the calendar we would love to see it, even if it's next Christmas!

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Today I am going to show you two advent tags (21 and 15) since both use the same stamp. The large flourish stamp is used 3 times but each in a different way. It's a way to expand tool bag your without spending the money on 3 different stamps. So here we go...

Tag #21

Stamp tag with the script stamp we have been using throughout the project. I used Distress ink - Antique Linen (Ranger).

Stamp tag with a large flourish. I am using one from the 7gypsies Calais stamp set. This time I changed ink colors to Frayed Burlap (if you want to stick with Vintage Photo that is fine too). Stamp the tag twice, turning the stamp so the end of the flourish is in the center of the tag.

Ink the edges of the tag with Vintage Photo to age it.

Add a bit of 7gypsies paper tape to the edge. Super easy to use, just rip and stick.

I added a bit of ink over the top. Now set tag aside.

I am using a vintage leaf, one of the darker inks and the large flourish stamp for this next embellishment. The leaf has a wire in the back to maintain it's shape.

Stamp the leaf with the large flourish stamp.

Follow the pattern of the stamp with Glossy Accents. I was going for the look of brocade fabric here but you can use a little or as much Glossy Accents as you like. Just remember, the thicker you put it on, the longer it takes to dry.

They will cut through almost anything. If you don't have a pair, you should.

Add a bit of Glossy Accents to the back of the earring and stick to the leaf. Hold it in place at least a minute or two to secure to leaf.

Add a few pieces of chain and a jump ring to a large key.

Gather tag, leaf, and key and secure to calendar with pin.

So lets do another tag using the same stamp but in a different way.

Tag #15

Adhere vintage music paper to tag. I like UHU glue stick for this. It can be challenging to use a tape runner with vintage paper because sometimes it will peel up a layer of the paper as you are rolling the tape on. Now I just stick (no pun intended) to UHU.

Use the same large flourish as in the last tag. I used a StazON ink -Timber brown for a darker edge. This time we are going to use the stamp to create an all-over pattern.

Stamp the tag 3 times, working your way to the top of the tag. I had to turn the flourish stamp each time I stamped so the pattern would fit. This is what mine looked like when I was done stamping.

Then I used a silver metallic Sharpie marker to fill in the empty space of the flourish. It takes a few minutes to do this but it's well worth it. I love the look the metallic marker give the vintage tag.

Here's what it looks like when it's all filled in.

Leave some brown showing for definition.

Same stamp, totally different look than the last one with the glitter.

Ink the edges with Vintage Photo. I just love this technique...it unifies all 24 tags on the board by giving them the same color edge.

NOTE: I have mentioned this before but if you are using a BRAND NEW Vintage Photo ink pad it is very dark. And because it is so dark you will probably want to stamp on a paper towel before inking the tag. My stamp pad has been used A LOT so it's easier to get a more subtle color. Ranger makes a such huge range of Distress ink (with 12 new one's coming at CHA in Jan) that you might need to experiment with what works best for you.

To finish the tag I added a large C and a vintage mother of pearl shoe clip that I found on my last trip to Paper & Metal Scrappers in Payson, AZ. The font for "is for Christmas" is Jailbird Jenna, same as Merry Christmas on number 25.

Well, we have one more tag to go before we move on to something new (right now I wish I knew what that was going to be). In a couple days I will be back with Tag #3, the dreaded paper flower. I saved that one until last because it took me that long to figure out how I did it. But once again, the thought came to me while I was in the shower last Tuesday so...the mystery is solved!

Lucky Day...it's when you get the first parking space at a busy store or when you find the thing that you have been looking for forever or it's finding a friend when you weren't even looking for one. What a LUCKY day.